Archive for September, 2012

While we witness the proverbial phoenix rising in many aspects of our lives, the world of music may in fact be the true aviary for such rebirth. Well before Wings took flight following the finality of the Fab Four and arguably to an even greater degree since, second acts for musicians have served as the ultimate silver lining for music fans bummed out by the demise of past favorites.

This week, here in Jet City, we’re thrilled to recommend two first-rate shows born out of a favorite local act of the not-too-distant past, Fleet Foxes.

While Poor Moon and Father John Misty have a shared past and similar foundational musical tendencies, these two bands offer fans something wildly different.

Poor Moon, a band that counts past Fleet Foxes Christian Wargo and Casey Wescott as founding members, embraces the love for rich harmony that served as the foundation of the Foxes sound and marries with it a love for retro-leaning melodies with pop flourishes. Their lyrics rejoice in the simple beauty of everyday life, and prove that simple arrangements are both elegant and powerful. The band will play Neumos tonight.

On the other side of the spectrum, Father John Misty frontman (and former Foxes drummer) Josh Tillman use his commanding vocal prowess as a largely dominant centerpiece of his sonically adventurous and often vaudeville-tinged tunes. While FJM certainly leans on tight harmonies from time to time, the prettiness of the backing vocals take a backstage to Tillman’s rich narratives of psychedelic misadventures and spiritual awakenings. Tillman and his band will play Neumos on Friday.

If you’re not going to at least one of these shows, your friends might finally hold that intervention about you needing to reassess your claim about being a music fan. Another great week ahead. Top picks below.

Music from Scandinavia and northern Europe is known for it’s unique instrumentation and large, dramatic crescendos. Tonight, however, we recommend a Scandinavian act that sounds a little closer to home.

Kristian Matsson, a.k.a. The Tallest Man on Earth, hails from Sweden, but plays some of the prettiest American folk-inspired tunes found anywhere. Inspired by the likes of Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger, Matsson’s raw vocals and intricate guitarwork sound like music born here, rather than across the pond.

The Tallest Man on Earth will be joined by Strand of Oaks at the Moore Theatre.

You may have seen us post about a local band called PonyHomie, but if you haven’t had the chance to actually see them in action yet, tonight would be the night to do it.

Grab your bandannas and your dancing shoes, because PonyHomie is playing tonight at the city’s famed Belltown venue, the Crocodile. The Seattle trio creates synth-drenched pop with eerie vocal effects – a perfect dichotomy of raw, dark tunes that make you want to dance the night away. PonyHomie is playing with Fort Lean and Lazer Kitty, rounding out one of the best nights in music this week.

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Bumbershoot wears some people out. But for others, like us, it reinvigorates us for the autumn tour season – and this season has no shortage of great upcoming shows. So if you are one of those people who needs more music after three straight days of live tunes, below are our top recommendations for this week.

Alas, the Emerald City’s finest music festival has come to a close, but we can still relive the long weekend through photos. Below we’ve posted a few from the final day of Bumbershoot, and be sure to check out our photos from Day 1 and Day 2.

We’ve made it to the final day of the festival. Our legs are tired, our ears are ringing and we’ve eaten too much festival food, but we are amped for the culmination of this year’s Bumbershoot. And if you want to relive the past couple days of the festival, check out our Day 1 photos, with images from Day 2 forthcoming.

Ty Segall (Fisher Green Stage, 3:15 PM)
We’ve seen quite a few polished, hi-fi bands at the festival this year, so we’re in the mood to let our hair down a little. Giving a clear nod to Seattle’s grunge and garage rock roots, Ty Segall offers a raw, rough-around-the-edges approach to alt-rock. Between driving guitar riffs and screeching vocals, you might want to bring some hearing protection for this set.

Fujiya & Miyagi (Fisher Green Stage, 8:00 PM)
Britain’s answer to the German Krautrock movement comes in the form of Fujiya & Miyagi, named after a brand of record player and a key character from Karate Kid, respectively. The electo-experimental quartet plays a mellow, downtempo brand of music, with quirky lyrics (think Knickerbocker and Taiwanese Boots).

Hey Marseilles (Starbucks Stage, 8:00 PM)
Making yet another appearance at Bumbershoot, the beloved local chamber-pop group Hey Marseilles will once again charm the crowds with their catchy composition and delightful instrumentation. The gaggle of gents that make up the group play a wide range of instruments, from violas to cellos to accordions to trumpets to mandolins, and everything in between. The band’s breakout hit, Rio, is sure to be on tonight’s setlist, and would serve as the perfect swan song to Bumbershoot 2012.

Enjoying Bumbershoot? We sure are. Keep your eyes here for all of our recs and photos, and talk to us on Twitter and Facebook. Also, don’t forget to check out our photos from Day 1.

Fruit Bats (Sub Pop Stage, 5:00pm)

With past stints with The Shins and Califone, Fruit Bats’ leader Eric D. Johnson plays the type of intelligent, lyrically-driven indie rock that you’d expect from such a pedigree. Over the years, the Bats have become one of Sub Pop’s most enjoyable live bands. You won’t want to miss this set from some of the best multi-instrumentalists playing the iconic label’s stage this year.

The Promise Ring (Exhibition Hall, 6:15pm)

Often cited as one of the forefathers of emo before it became a dirty word in the mid-2000’s, The Promise Ring plays introspective pop rock with a healthy serving of light-hearted punk. The Milwaukee band was around from 1995 through late 2002 and has since gotten back momentarily in 2005 and again in 2011. Spend some time with the band at Ex Hall to take audio stroll down memory lane.

Deep Sea Diver (The Promenade, 7:30pm)

Long before Jessica Dobson became a household name for her work with Beck and The Shins (for households that know those kinds of things), she was a much-admired west coast guitarist and songwriter. Her solo-project-turned-band, Deep Sea Diver, has been gaining rapid acclaim and with the release May 2012’s History Speaks, which NPR calls “a complex, precisely arranged and lyrically pensive suite of songs about heartbreak and yearning,” Dobson’s catapulted into the upper echelon of Seattle’s most talented, gushed-over musicians.